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South Fayette recognizes three National Merit semifinalists; superintendent highlights safety and programs
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Miller recognized three South Fayette students named National Merit semifinalists and reported on safety initiatives, upcoming events and district pilots, including an AI pilot in cybersecurity courses and a new campus safety system.
The South Fayette Township School District on Wednesday honored three high-school seniors named National Merit semifinalists and received a monthly update from Superintendent Dr. Miller on safety training, events and instructional initiatives.
Dr. Dirda, a high-school administrator, introduced seniors Hannah, Dan and Tejas Palakkori and noted they volunteer weekly as peer tutors during the school's flex period. The students briefly described postsecondary plans: Hannah said she intends to study computer science, Dan said he plans to study computer science and chemistry with an interest in materials research, and Tejas Palakkori said he intends to pursue computer science with a physics focus.
Superintendent Dr. Miller said semifinalists are continuing through the process to be named finalists in February 2026 and thanked teachers and families for their support.
In his monthly report, Dr. Miller said the district completed the first academic quarter and will hold family-teacher conferences on Nov. 24. He noted athletic successes including state-qualifying performances by the boys' golf team and playoff wins by the girls' soccer team.
October is school-safety month, Dr. Miller said, and the district will begin drills and staff training, and will add Syntegix (a campus safety system) to district campuses. He said South Fayette is the first district in Allegheny County to implement the Syntegix system. The superintendent also announced a change to middle-school morning drop-off procedures: parents will drop students at the back of the building and buses will use the front entrance; the district has distributed written communications to families.
Dr. Miller previewed upcoming events and programs, including a fall parade for grades K–5, a Future Focus Summit that hosted more than 200 educators and school leaders with instruction on AI and innovation, and an “Uncommon” regional conference set for Nov. 14 that he said will draw about 524 attendees from 29 schools. He also noted a teacher in the high school was named the recipient of a teacher-appreciation award and that the award includes game tickets, merchandise and a $1,000 classroom stipend.
Several education and student-support items were read for the record and placed on next week’s agenda, including dates for an AHN summer camp, an extended-school-year program for July 2026, approval of a middle-school club as an extracurricular program, a grant-funded pilot of Praxis AI in the district cybersecurity course and an agreement with the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf to provide hearing services during 2025-26; those items were not voted on at the meeting.
The recognitions and the superintendent's report were delivered at the start of the public meeting after the board said it had held an executive session before the public session to discuss personnel and legal matters.
